This history of Fairview School is taken from the second edition of Building for Learning: Seattle Public School Histories, which includes histories of every school building used by the district since its formation around 1862. The original essay was written for the 2002 first edition by Nile Thompson and Carolyn J. Marr, and updated for the 2024 edition by HistoryLink editor Nick Rousso.
Spectacular Vistas
Fairview School was founded in 1907 when Green Lake School was overcrowded, and Ravenna School consisted of only a couple of portables. The new school was situated in a new real estate development called Fairview, appropriately named for its spectacular vistas of Green Lake, Lake Washington, Mount Rainier, and the Cascade Mountains. Roosevelt Way, the major north-south road, led through cow pastures, and many of today’s streets were only footpaths.
Fairview opened three weeks into the school year in two portables at 9th Avenue and (N)E 79th Street. On the first day, one of the two teachers sat outside on a stump while desks and a stove were installed in her classroom. Soon a third portable and third teacher were added to handle 144 pupils in grades 1-5. The principal also was given jurisdiction over Ravenna and walked there daily through the woods. Construction started soon on a permanent building, which was completed by fall 1908. The school board voted for brick over the usual wood frame for fire safety. The three elementary schools built that year (Fairview, Whitworth, and Lawton) all followed plans virtually identical to the wooden model schools and promised to outlast their predecessors.
Fairview’s original eight rooms held grades 1-7. In 1909, the 8th grade was added. The first 8th grade class to graduate, in June 1910, chose the school’s colors of black and orange.
Anticipating the need for additional space, in 1921 the district purchased additional lots that made up the rest of the block to the west of the school. In 1927-1928, enrollment exceeded 450, even though the 7th and 8th graders were assigned to John Marshall Junior High. Five portables provided additional classroom space. A new addition on the east side provided office space, eight new classrooms, and an auditorium-lunchroom. In 1931 a kindergarten was added.
A changing of the guard occurred at Fairview in 1946. Eunice Copeland retired after serving as principal since 1922. Taking her place was Arthur Gravrock, who would remain until 1970. Each served 24 years.
Enrollment Dips
With growth in the city and annexation of neighborhoods to the north in 1954, Fairview’s student body reached an all-time high of 887 pupils. Again, portables were brought in and occupied the west playground. A gradual decline in enrollment took place over the next 10 years for several reasons. Some 180 students left when Sacajawea School, located a little over two miles to the northeast, opened in 1959, cutting Fairview’s enrollment to 558 by June 1960. Construction of Interstate 5 in 1963 caused the loss of many homes in its path in the Fairview neighborhood. Also contributing to reduced enrollment were a declining birth rate and a general movement to the suburbs.
As space became available, a special education class for socially and emotionally delayed children was located at the school in 1962. A second class was added during the next decade. A new office on the first floor and a faculty lounge on the lower floor were placed in empty classrooms in fall 1969. In fall 1971, 6th graders left for Wilson or Eckstein Middle School and attendance plummeted further, to 316. During the 1973-1974 school year, the student body temporarily swelled when Ravenna was closed for renovation. Overall, the school-age population had been in decline for over a decade and the budget was also tight. School closures were being discussed as early as December 1972. In September 1974, it was determined that the School Board would delay any decisions on school closure for at least three years. However, in spring 1976, after a school levy failed, Fairview, University Heights, High Point, Loyal Heights, and Northgate were slated to be closed on a one-year emergency basis.
However, the King County Superior Court granted an injunction against school closures on August 27, 1976, and the schools had to be staffed and reopened for the first day of school less than two weeks later, on September 9. The case was brought before the court by supporters of University Heights and High Point. The judge ruled that the school board was “clearly erroneous” in failing to file an environmental impact statement, in compliance with provisions of the Environmental Policy Act. In early 1978, public hearings were held to allow the public to comment on the Draft Environmental Impact Statements for the proposed closure of the five elementary schools, including Fairview. Signatures were collected and letters from Fairview businesses were submitted attempting to block closure of the school. These efforts were unsuccessful and Fairview closed permanently in June 1978. Most of the 165 pupils transferred to Olympic View or Bagley.
The neighborhood fiercely opposed an early plan to sell Fairview School to the Seattle Housing Authority for a low-income housing site. The district received four bids for the site in 1982 and chose the highest, which came from Pacific Northwest Ballet. By June 1983, that deal had fallen through, and the First Church of the Nazarene leased the site. Finally, the building was sold to the Woodland Park Avenue Church in 1985. The building now houses the renamed Fairview Church as well as the Fairview Child Center, a nondenominational Christian school for PK-5.
History
Fairview School
Location: 844 NE 78th Street
Building: 3-story, 9-room brick
Architect: James Stephen
Site: 2.01 acres
1908: Opened
1921: Site expanded to 2.86 acres
1928: Addition (n.a.)
1978: Closed in June
1985: Sold
Present: Site of Fairview Church and Child Center
